Presenters
The Honorable Thomas C. Dorr
Under Secretary for Rural Development, U.S. Department of Agriculture
Thomas C. Dorr joined USDA in 2001 and was appointed by President George W. Bush in 2002 as the Under Secretary for Rural Development. Rural Development provides up to $18 billion annual in funding for loans, grants, and technical assistance to rural residents, communities, and businesses. Rural Development also holds a $97 billion portfolio of existing business, housing, and infrastructure loans to rural America and is the largest Federal government financier of commercial renewable energy ventures. As Under Secretary, he serves as the Chairman of the USDA Energy Council, which promotes the production of domestically grown fuel. He also serves as the Federal Co-Chair of the Biomass Research and Development Board where he created a national renewable energy conference in October of 2006. The conference brought together nearly 1,500 private and public sector renewable energy interests, including President Bush, Cabinet members from the Departments of Agriculture and Energy, as well as the Environmental Protection Agency. As president of a family farming and agribusiness company for 30 years, he has broad agricultural, financial and business experience. Mr. Dorr is from Marcus, Iowa, graduated from Morningside College with a BS degree in business administration.
Darla Moore
Founder and Board Chair, Palmetto Institute
Darla Moore is a partner in Rainwater, Inc., one of the largest private investment firms in America. She is also affiliated with a number of prestigious corporate and not-for-profit boards of directors, including Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, MPS Group, Inc., and the JP Morgan National Advisory Board.
She is a member of the board of the Harry Ransom Humanities Research Center, vice chairman of the New York University School of Medicine Foundation Board, and a member of the NYU Hospitals Board.
She holds a BA degree in Political Science from the University of South Carolina and an MBA from George Washington University. The University of South Carolina named its business school after Ms. Moore in 1998. Ms. Moore serves on the University of South Carolina's Board of Trustees and was appointed to President Bush's education transition team. Prior to joining Rainwater, Inc. in 1994, Ms. Moore was a managing Director of Chase Bank, today JP Morgan. Widely recognized for her success in finance, she has received numerous awards in banking and finance. She was profiled on CNN, and was the first woman to be profiled on the cover of Fortune magazine in its 70-year history. She was named to Fortune's list of the "Top 50 Most Powerful Women in American Business." Ms. Moore is chair and founder of the Palmetto Institute, a non-profit policy research foundation in South Carolina.
Stephen Colbert
Host of Comedy Central's "Colbert Report"
A South Carolina native, Stephen Colbert is the host and executive producer of the Emmy-nominated series on Comedy Central, "The Colbert Report." Touted by the New York Times as "one of the best television shows of the year" and praised as "a must watch show" by Entertainment Weekly, "The Colbert Report" has garnered top ratings and critical success. His personality, insight and overall rightness led to his half-hour nightly platform which takes on issues of the day, and more importantly, tells you why everyone else's take is just plain wrong. In his new book, I AM AMERICA (And So Can You!) (Grand Central Publishing), he voices his opinions on all things American as loudly in print as he does on air. Prior to hosting his own show, he also was the longest-tenured and most diverse correspondent on "The Daily Show with Jon Stewart." Born and raised near Charleston, South Carolina, he graduated from Northwestern University and quickly made a name for himself as a member of Chicago's famed Second City improv troupe. Stephen, his wife Evelyn, and their three children reside in the New York area.
Frank Brown
President and CEO, MarketSearch
Frank Brown has been involved in market and consumer behavior research for almost three decades. He received a BA and MA from Baylor University and earned his doctorate in sociology from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He began his professional career in market research in the mid-70s, after teaching social psychology and research methods at both Emory University and the University of South Carolina. In 1985, he started MarketSearch Corporation, a full-service market research company specializing in major service-sector industries such as utilities, healthcare and consumer goods. For the past 20 years his firm has been involved with a broad range of studies related to South Carolina agriculture including research with growers, grocers, major food companies, financial institutions serving the agricultural community, as well as the South Carolina Department of Agriculture. He is actively involved nationally in the research industry and currently serves on the Board of Directors of Council of American Survey Research Organizations (CASRO).
Hugh E. Weathers
Commissioner of Agriculture, State of South Carolina
A third generation dairy farmer, Hugh E. Weathers of Bowman, SC, was appointed as Interim Commissioner of Agriculture for the State of South Carolina in September of 2004 and Commissioner of Agriculture in January of 2005.
He is co-owner of Weathers Farms, Inc. a dairy operation in Bowman, and Weathers Trucking, Inc., a bulk milk delivery service. The Commissioner is a University of South Carolina Magna Cum Laude graduate with a BS in Accounting and Finance and a former Corporate Banking Officer with C&S National Bank. He is also a partner of Circle W Farms in Bowman. He has served on the United Dairy Industry Association, Southeast United Dairy Industry Association, American Dairy Association of SC, South Carolina Dairy Association, South Carolina Farm Bureau Legislative Committee and PAC Committee, South Carolina Conservation Bank, AgSouth Farm Credit Association and the GreaterBowman Business Development Council.
Nathan Clark
Director, Offset Projects and Economist at Chicago Climate Exchange
In his position, Nathan Clark leads the world's first and North Americas only active, voluntary, legally binding integrated trading system designed to reduce emissions of all six greenhouse gases with offset projects. His projects can be found throughout North America and worldwide. He previously worked as an associate with Community Habitat Finance International (CHF), focusing on sustainable economic development in the agriculture sector in southern Serbia and the former United Nations Former Ground Safety Zone between Serbia and Kosovo. While at CHF Serbia, he aided in the design phase of their countrywide environmental program strategy. Prior to his international work, he was a research associate in the Department of Agricultural Economics at the University of Kentucky College of Agriculture. While receiving his M.S. in Agricultural Economics, his research focused on the environmental impacts of the U.S. Federal Crop Insurance Program.
David Winkles
President, South Carolina Farm Bureau
David Winkles runs his family's 1,200-acre soybean, corn, wheat and cotton farm near the town of Oswego in Sumter County. In December 2005, he was elected to his fifth term as president of the S.C. Farm Bureau Federation, a non-profit advocacy organization for South Carolina farmers. In 2000, he was appointed by US Agriculture Secretary Dan Glickman to serve on the National Biotechnology Advisory Committee, and he was recently appointed by US Agriculture Secretary Johanns to serve on the National Agricultural Technical Advisory Committee for Trade. He is the past chairman of the South Carolina Soybean Board and is a past chairman of the United Soybean Board (USB). He also served as chairman of USB's domestic marketing committee, which had an annual budget of $5 million. Currently, he serves as an American Farm Bureau Biotechnology spokesperson, and is a National Cotton Council Advisor. He also represents Carolina Soya LLC in the National Oilseed Processors Association. He holds a BA degree in economics from Clemson University.